Review: Shu Uemura Nobara Cream Cover Stick Foundation

Which is why despite buying 5 foundation this month I just had to buy the new Shu Uemura offering, the Nobara Cream Cover Stick Foundation:

She Uemura base products I used and stopped using using many moons ago. Its nice stuff. Nice. Not as good as RMK. Better than a lot of other brands out there but not quite spectacular.

The old Nobara foundation I had came in the cheap plastic case and was a very thick, rich, creamy base with medium to high coverage. It was absolutely not for oily skin types – it had a greasy feel to it but I was a fan.

Well, Nobara is back but in stick form. I have a soft spot for stick foundations because they are just so easy – I have tried Bobbi Brown (I like), Laura Merciers (bit too dry), Shiseido (too much fragrance) and a few others.

I went to the counter near me in Selfridges and the SA’s were a little on the plank side. Not particularly helpful. The guy who served smelt of fags and proceeded to tell me that everything was Limited Edition, once I said I liked LE stuff.

I also told him I have 95% of all the Shu Eyeliners and Eyeshadows but he kept picking out things for me, that were “new” when I knew very well that that they weren’t….but I digress.

Testing the foundation on my hand (tsk!) he picked out shade 734 which is mighty dark in the tube. I am about a NC35 – this looks pretty dark to me, perhaps more suited to an Indian skintone:

Anyway, to stop the SA breathing on me I bought the damn foundation – it was a rather steep £30.Credit to Shu though – they have shades from a very light almost white colour to a fairly dark brown – a lot of Japanese brands just stick to lighter shades but I guess Shu is aware that if you are going international, you need a range of skintones.

They say:

A new stick version of shu uemura’s cult favorite, nobara cream foundation, formulated to give the instant high coverage of a concealer with the smooth glide of a foundation.

It is indeed a thick, creamy foundation. It is very much like the old version of Nobara, in that it is high coverage and rich but its less greasy too which is a good thing.

Its very very soft – no dragging or warming up needed which is great as I live in a cold climate!

I can see how this would work as a concealer stick too – like I said the coverage is medium to high and would work well on blemishes. A bit heavy all over – maybe, if you are used to say, tinted moisturiser. Otherwise just blend it out with your brush or sponge – it will look fine.

Before:

During:

After:

Colour is a tad warm but its ok. It will do.

I have ordered the mousse UV primer and the powder to go along with this and I’m going to see if the whole shebang creates a flawless, long lasting finish on me.

At the moment I am using samples from the Armani counter of Masterpiece Primer, Lasting Silk Foundation and Loose Powder and its a gorgeous combination. I want to know if Shu can match up!

Verdict:

I always knew I was going to buy this because I was a fan of the original Nobara but I wasn’t really excited by it. £30 is also expensive, I think, for a stick foundation.

The packaging is plain, the product does exactly what it says. I don’t feel like my skin is glowing though, and it definitely needs some powder to set it or its crisco-face all the way.

Its a good stick. I will keep it in my good-to-go make up bag, and whip it out for touch ups, but not as my every day fail proof base.

I have the Shiseido Stick Foundation but… eh :\ Actually.. I have no idea where I put it. The SA said it was universal shade but it’s too light for me & I told her that but nooo my mother was on the SA’s side. When I use it I look like a pale Japanese girl, the kind you find in horror movies!